It started last September with headaches. Bad ones. Then came the vision problems. So, after a while, Brandon Ayers decided to have himself checked out.
By January, Ayers had his answer — followed quickly by three surgeries, a whole lot of hospital bills and the promise that more of both would be coming down the line.
That’s when Ayers’ friends made up their minds to help him with a solution that could be music to his ears.
Tonight, Natasha’s pool hall will hold a rock n’ roll benefit for Ayers, beginning at 7 p.m. The tickets are $5 and the names are ones that most of Emporia knows by now: The DeWayn Bros., the Highwater String Band, Kristy Korsak, Elexa Dawson & the Hitchhikers. A raffle will go on throughout the night as well, with items donated by local merchants.
“To tell the truth, I’ve got great friends and they’re very excited about it,” said Ayers, the son of Brown’s Shoe Fit owner Jim Ayers. “There’s a lot of good bands that are going to be playing there. It’s going to be a good time. And there’ll be a lot of old friends there, I imagine.”
Ayers’ condition is known as an arterio-venous malformation, or AVM. It’s what happens when a tangle of blood vessels keeps blood from getting to the brain as it should. Normally, blood passes through the arteries toward the brain, enters a small collection of blood vessels called capillaries and passes oxygen to the tissues. Then the “used” blood heads back to the heart through the veins.
The malformation causes a short circuit in the system, a place that lacks the capillaries. Blood passes from the artery to the vein without ever nourishing the tissues. Nobody’s sure what causes the disorder, although it does not seem to be hereditary and can lie undetected for years. About 250,000 people in the United States are believed to have the disorder, according to the Columbia University Medical Center.
The warning signs tend to be severe headaches or even seizures as the strain of the “short circuit” weakens and tears blood vessels, causing bleeding. As the person grows, so does the malformation. And as it gets bigger, the chances of it causing serious damage become greater. Left untreated, the disorder can result in a stroke or even death.
For Ayers, dealing with his medical problem meant uprooting quite a bit of his life. He had been a retail salesman in Manhattan, working with show companies and furniture stores. Now he is staying in Emporia and his profession had effectively become “patient.”
“It was surreal,” he said.
To fix the disorder, Ayers has been going through a procedure called embolization. Basically, he said, a small catheter is run into the body to inject a glue-like substance that seals off the area. The procedures are usually spaced a few weeks apart, with exams in between to see if another round is needed.
Ayers has had three treatments so far — one exploratory surgery using ink instead of glue so the doctors could study the situation and then two full procedures.
“There’s going to be a couple more at least,” he said.
So far, he said, things have been going well. He’s in good spirits and so are his parents.
“They worry, but they’re good,” he said. “We’re a strong family.”
Tonight he intends to sit back and enjoy the music. With luck, it’ll even help him take a step back to his ultimate goal.
“I want to go back to work,” Ayers said. “I want to get back to a normal lifestyle.”
Patrons must be at least 21 to buy tickets. The benefit is sponsored by Natasha’s, Wheat State Pizza and Monarch Tattoo.
The pool hall is at 627 Commercial St.
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Posted by citizenT (anonymous) on August 24, 2007 at 4:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Ayers Family,
Our family has gone through your situation twice! Once with our daughter, and second with my mother-in-law. They both went through the embolization process, and our daughter then followed with actual brain surgery to remove hers. We are praying for you. If you ever feel the need to talk with people that have been there please feel free to contact me. They have both made fantastic recoveries! Keep up the faith. Today's medical technology is amazing.
Local Emporian
Posted by jasper007 (anonymous) on August 25, 2007 at 8 a.m. (Suggest removal)
From a friend (from antique shop), sorry I missed the "gig". Hope you had fun and just know a lot of people are thinking of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You are a great guy, Brandon.
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